


Another Close Call

by obs3ss1ons



Category: Station 19 (TV)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Building Collapse, F/M, Family, Friendship, Gen, Rescue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-11-08 23:33:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17990612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/obs3ss1ons/pseuds/obs3ss1ons
Summary: For Station 19 Theme Week: Day 3 - Flashover/Angst and Hurt/ComfortLucas and Sullivan watch a building collapse on the whole team.





	Another Close Call

**Author's Note:**

  * For [madnephelite](https://archiveofourown.org/users/madnephelite/gifts), [fandommatchmaker19](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandommatchmaker19/gifts).



> I did it! This story actually wrote pretty quickly. I already had the idea but wasn't sure if I'd get it finished today.
> 
> This is set several months into Vicley's relationship. The department knows and generally supports it because why wouldn't they?

The scene was complete chaos when Lucas arrived. Four stations were there already with two more on the way. The west end of the building was engulfed in flames. It had been burning for a while. He only hoped the high school was actually as empty as it should be at nine o’clock in the evening. Yet something or someone had started the fire.

It appeared Nineteen had been first on scene. He found Sullivan giving orders to a group of firefighters. Walking up just as they walked away, Lucas said, “Give me a report.”

“The fire's all on the west end. My team is doing a sweep, but it’s taking time. I’ve got one team on front and one on back hosing it down and another keeping the area just to the east wet,” Sullivan told him.

Lucas nodded and said over the radio, “Nineteen, what've we got so far?”

The radio crackled, and then Gibson’s voice answered, “Nothing so far. We've only covered half, though. I think there was an explosion at some point because there’s a lot of debris to work around.”

As soon as he stopped talking, the air shook. Flames erupted up into the night sky. Lucas watched as the walls of the entire west half of the building crumbled. He ran two steps forward before a hand on his shoulder stopped him. Sullivan yelled into his radio, “Nineteen, report!”

Nothing.

Lucas tried, “Anyone from Nineteen, give us something!”

Silence.

Tears burned Lucas’s eyes, and it wasn’t from the smoke. His heart skipped a few beats. His lungs forgot how to function. He stared at what was left of the building. The chaos around him faded away as he focused on the pile of rubble. This couldn’t be happening. Not again. And this time the building actually had collapsed. This time he had family inside.

Someone began shouting beside him. He vaguely registered the voice as Sullivan’s. Fear edged into the commands to get the fire out. A newly arrived team was ordered to get set up for rescue. That word restarted Lucas’s brain. “I’m going in.”

“You can’t-” Sullivan started.

Lucas pointed toward the building. “That’s my girlfriend and her family in there. There’s no way I’m staying out here to wait for their bodies to be brought out.”

“It’s my team,” Sullivan argued.

“That’s why you’re going with me,” Lucas told him. He motioned for another captain to approach. “You take point. Sullivan and I are the first inside to get our people.”

The captain nodded and began barking orders. Lucas and Sullivan got their equipment on. Someone handed them each an extinguisher. With one quick shared nod, the two men headed for the building. Every hose had been moved to cover the rubble as soon as the collapse happened, so the fire was nearly out. But still they had to extinguish a few areas before they could proceed.

Lucas called over his radio again, “Can anyone from Nineteen hear me?”

It crackled, and Lucas looked up to meet Sullivan’s eyes. He spoke again, “If you can hear me, make some noise. We’re coming to get you.”

Seconds later a dull thud came from a few feet away. Lucas and Sullivan scanned the area around them. Then Sullivan pointed to what looked like a shelving unit. A boot stuck out from under it. And the boot was moving.

At once they started clearing debris away so they could lift the shelf. When they finally did, Herrera looked up at them. “Montgomery's below me. He’s conscious but not talking.”

“Are you hurt?” Sullivan asked.

“No,” she responded. “The shelf protected us from the wall.”

They each reached out a hand for her to grab. She did and lifted herself up to a standing position. Lucas ordered another RIT team to help her to the aid car before turning back to where she’d been. Montgomery lay on his back with his arms up by his head. He blinked his eyes open.

“You good?” Lucas inquired.

Montgomery moaned. Sullivan hollered for a backboard. They moved some more debris away while they waited. Then they worked with two others to lift Montgomery onto the board. Lucas watched him be carried out of the now smoking rubble.

“We’ve got one!” someone shouted. Lucas turned in that direction in time to see Warren sit up. His helmet was missing, and he had a large gash on his forehead, but he was awake.

They continued the search. Sullivan tried using the radio again, but he didn’t get a response. Then Lucas heard a familiar but chilling sound. He grabbed Sullivan’s arm. “Listen.”

“A pass device!” Sullivan announced. They worked their way toward the sound. Lucas tripped, and when he looked down, he saw the back of a helmet.

“Right here!” he yelled. Sullivan and another man hurried to him. They dug around the helmet, which led them to finding Miller. His eyes were closed, his face relaxed. Lucas placed two fingers against his neck, letting out a rush of air when he felt a pulse. He gazed down Miller’s body and stopped the efforts to pull him out. “He’s got a penetrating wound. Looks like a piece of metal.”

The men changed the way they finished getting Miller out. It took longer than Lucas would’ve liked, but finally he was on a board and enroute to an aid car. Another team announced they found someone. Just as Lucas reached them, Bishop was lifted up and placed on another board. Her arm was clearly broken, and for once she wasn’t talking. She looked like she was sleeping. Lucas met the gaze of the one who pulled her out. The man told him, “She’s alive. Part of a central wall had her pinned down.”

“Get her out of here,” Lucas replied. He did a mental check. All but two had been found, and they were all alive so far. But they still needed to find two more. They still needed to find Vic.

“I think we found another one!” Sullivan yelled. He moved a large chunk of concrete and added, “Luke, get over here!”

The use of his first name spurned Lucas to move quicker. There was only one reason Sullivan would call him anything but Chief while on scene. He reached the area and peered down. Gibson lay on his stomach, and from under him, Vic stared up at them.

Vic smiled when she saw him. “Lucas! I’m so happy to see you!”

“Are you,” he stopped to clear his throat. “Are you hurt?”

Vic responded, “Not really. Though Gibson’s getting a little heavy. He threw himself on top of me when the outer wall collapsed.”

“We’ll get you out as fast as we can,” Sullivan said. Vic nodded.

Lucas called out, “Everyone on RIT over here! We need to get this wall off the last of our firefighters!”

With everyone working together, they removed the pieces of wall that pinned Gibson and Vic down. By the time they lifted the last piece, Gibson was beginning to stir. Sullivan knelt down to check him for injuries. Lucas couldn’t take his eyes off Vic. Who was alive. Her eyes had drifted closed, but she was still breathing.

Then Gibson was lifted off of her, and her eyes opened again. They went straight to Lucas. Sullivan helped carry Gibson away, so Lucas kneeled down next to Vic. He ran his hands over her, checking for obvious injuries. She lifted a hand to his face. Tears pooled in her eyes. “You found me.”

He placed his hand on hers. “I never would’ve stopped until I did.”

Two more men showed up with another backboard. Lucas helped move Vic onto it and strapped her down himself. He helped carry her across the rubble toward the last aid car. As she was loaded in, he told the woman getting her vitals, “Don’t leave just yet. I’m going with her.”

“Yes, Sir,” the woman replied with a blank face.

Lucas searched for the captain who had taken over. He walked up to him and said, “You’re in charge of overhaul. Sullivan and I are riding over to the hospital. Here’s my keys. Have your most responsible team member deliver my vehicle to headquarters and leave the keys with my secretary.”

“Of course, Sir. You and Sullivan need to go be with your family,” the Captain responded. “And Chief, I’m glad she made it out alive.”

“I’m glad they all did,” Lucas commented. He went back to the aid car Vic was in. Sullivan climbed into Gibson’s just before it pulled away. Lucas slid in beside Vic. He grasped her hand and smiled down at her.

“Ready to go, Chief?” the medic asked from beside him. He nodded. She climbed out and shut the doors. Seconds later, they left the scene.

Lucas was glad he was alone with Vic. Her eyes were closed again. He couldn’t stop staring at her. She was right in front of him. Alive. Conscious. Only a few scratches showing. His heart finally felt like it could work properly again. His lungs let him suck in a deep breath for the first time since the collapse. Vic was safe. Her entire team was safe and on their way to the hospital.

Lucas stayed with Vic until the doctors kicked him out of the room so they could examine her. But even then he stood just outside the door. Sullivan approached him looking more tired than he’d ever seen him. Lucas asked, “Any updates on the others?”

“Miller and Bishop are in surgery. Montgomery is talking and sitting up now. He just has some bruised ribs and got the air knocked out of his lungs. Apparently Herrera was thrown against him by the blast,” Sullivan informed him.

“And how is she doing?”

Sullivan shook his head, a small smile lifting one corner of his lips. “She’s currently arguing with Captain Herrera about where she’s going to stay once they release her.”

“Sounds like her,” Lucas mumbled. “The others?”

“Warren is being looked at by his wife. They’re still evaluating Gibson.” Sullivan shifted. “He woke up on the way here. He said to tell you he did his best to keep her alive for you.”

Lucas’s gaze snapped to the Captain’s. Sympathy reflected back at him. He returned to watching the activity in Vic’s room. “I love her, Sully.”

“We know,” Sullivan replied softly. “We can all see it.”

“I almost lost her.”

There was a pause. Then Sullivan said, “Now you know how your first two wives felt.”

Again Lucas looked at his friend. “What’s that mean?”

Sullivan shrugged. “Claire explained it to me once after a bad call. She said her heart broke every time she heard about a firefighter getting hurt or killed. She expected the worst every single time until she heard from me that I was okay.”

“I never thought about it like that.”

“That’s because you’ve never been on that side of it.”

Lucas watched as some of the medical personnel left Vic’s room. He could see her again. She still lay flat on the bed, but she was talking to one of the nurses. Her left foot rocked back and forth, and Lucas’s lips twitched. It was a sign that she was getting anxious. That she was ready for whatever was happening to be over with. But it was also a sign that she was truly okay.

Hours later, Lucas sat in the waiting room. Vic had been discharged and sat curled up to his side, sleeping thanks to the pain medication she’d been given. Nothing broken, and no internal injuries. Lucas still knew he’d be up all night watching her for any lingering signs the doctors missed something.

Sullivan sat across from them, his head resting against the wall behind him. His eyes were closed, but Lucas couldn’t tell if he was asleep. Captain Herrera sat a few chairs down, periodically checking the elevators that had taken Lieutenant Herrera up to Bishop’s room for a visit. Warren had been forced to go home with his wife only with promises of updates on the others.

Miller had just been taken into recovery. The metal pierced his colon but no other organs. He would need some time, but he would have a full recovery. Gibson ended up with three cracked ribs, a bruised lung, and a sprained knee. He was being kept overnight for observation. Lucas had gone to see him as soon as he was settled in a room and thanked him for saving Vic’s life.

Gibson had only shrugged and said, “She’s family. And I really didn’t want to have to tell you that she died.”

“I’m glad you didn’t have to.”

Movement caught Lucas’s attention. He looked up to see Montgomery walk into the room. Lucas nudged Vic awake. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, smiling when she spotted her best friend. “Travis! They finally let you go.”

Montgomery hugged Vic as she threw her arms around his neck. “Yeah, they said my heart is doing fine. I can go home as long as I don’t do anything strenuous.”

Lucas stood and placed a hand on Vic’s back. He needed to be near her, keep reminding himself she was actually okay. To Montgomery, he said, “Well, until Grant can get away from the restaurant you’re coming home with us.”

“Since when do you take orders from my boyfriend?”

Vic answered, “He doesn’t. He takes them from me, and Grant asked me to take care of you until he can. So yes, Montgomery, you’re coming home with us.”

“I’m not going to argue. I really don’t feel like being at my house alone right now anyway,” he agreed.

Lucas stepped over to Sullivan and lightly shook his shoulder. When the Captain opened his eyes, Lucas told him, “We’re heading out. Everyone is safe and resting. Go home and get some sleep. You need it.”

Sullivan seemed to notice Montgomery standing with Vic. He nodded. “I’ll do that.”

The four of them told Captain Herrera goodbye and left the hospital. Montgomery moved slowly, so Lucas went ahead of the others to hail a cab. He let Sullivan stretch out in the front seat while he crowded into the back next to Vic. She linked one hand with Montgomery's and one hand with his the entire ride to his house. Lucas didn’t mind a bit. He was just glad that she and her family had made it through yet another horrifying call.


End file.
